(Football news) For a number of clubs, the previous week was a big one as Real Madrid and Sevilla FC confirmed their advancement in European play, while teams like FC Barcelona and Valencia CF scored key victories in LaLiga Santander. This past week, Real Betis also made a significant announcement. All of these items are explored below, along with others.
Towards winning the championship, FC Barcelona makes a significant stride.
On Sunday at the Spotify Camp Nou, FC Barcelona supporters had much to cheer about as Xavi’s team defeated Diego Simeone’s excellent Atlético de Madrid 1-0. A goal by Ferran Torres just before halftime and saves by Marc-André ter Stegen determined this matchup between the two most impressive teams in the nation. With the victory, Barça has an 11-point lead over the competition.
To advance to the Europa League semifinals, Sevilla FC destroys Manchester United.
The last week saw celebrations at Sevilla FC as well. The Andalusian club defeated Manchester United 3-0 in their Europa League quarterfinal second leg to advance 5-2 on aggregate over the English team. An exciting atmosphere was produced by the Sevilla FC supporters at a jam-packed Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, where José Luis Mendilibar’s team excelled in this competition that Los Nervionenses adore.
In the past 13 years, Real Madrid has advanced to its 11th semifinal of the Champions League.
Real Madrid defeated Chelsea 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to win the Champions League, ensuring Spanish presence in the last four. Rodrygo scored both goals in the victory. As a result, Los Blancos defeated the Londoners 4-0 overall. Real Madrid has now advanced to the semifinals of the Champions League in 11 of the previous 13 seasons.
A true legend has decided to retire.
This past week, we discovered that a true LaLiga Santander great was getting ready to put up his boots. Joaqun, the 41-year-old captain of Real Betis, has made the decision to call it a career after the 2022–23 season, capping a glittering career that he spent primarily with the team where he first started playing football. Given that the winger has currently appeared in 616 LaLiga Santander games, just six fewer than Andoni Zubizarreta’s record, he may even leave the game with the most LaLiga Santander appearances of all time.
Real Sociedad and Athletic Club get closer to achieving their goals
Following significant wins by Real Sociedad and Athletic Club on Matchday 30, European football is expected to return to the Basque Country in the upcoming season. La Real defeated Rayo Vallecano 2-1, and as a result of that victory and other developments, the fourth-place team increased the distance to fifth place to six points. When it comes to Athletic Club, the Bilbao squad defeated UD Almera by the same score, putting them exactly one point behind sixth place and solidly in seventh place, should that position also result in a European spot.
For efficiency, Asensio is at the top.
On Saturday night at RC Celta’s home stadium, Real Madrid defeated the Galician team 2-0 to win Matchday 30. After helping Éder Milito from a corner to start the scoring, Marco Asensio added to his tally of eight goals and five assists for the year. In LaLiga Santander, he has the best rate of any player with more than 300 total minutes, scoring or providing an assist per 80 minutes.
Valencia CF scores three much-needed points.
Valencia CF visited their nearby rivals Elche CF on Sunday and came away with three much-needed points, while still being in the relegation zone. Los Che won 2-0 and now have 30 points, the same as UD Almera in 17th place after Samuel Lino set the tone and opened the scoring.
Pezzolano improved Real Valladolid’s situation.
The Pucela’s fortunes have dramatically changed after Paulo Pezzolano joined Real Valladolid. They’ve won his previous two games, first against Villarreal CF and then on Saturday against Girona FC, following a tie in his debut. Pezzolano has made an impact, scoring seven points in the last three games.
Inigo Lekue decides stay at Bilbao.
Iigo Lekue’s contract with Athletic Club has been extended through 2025, the club announced this past week. Although his previous contract was set to expire this summer, both the player and the team desired to remain partners.
There will soon be more LaLiga Santander action.
The good news for LaLiga Santander supporters is that there are 10 more matches scheduled for this midweek, with Matchday 31 taking place on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The season is officially coming to a conclusion after all the drama and goals of Matchday 30, and the next round is only a few weeks away.
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